Saturday, June 30, 2012

999 (more HERE) visited Toronto on the tour for their excellent album Concrete. After that things went off the rails for 999. While the band stuck together after the very, very disappointing 13th Floor Madness it took them awhile to re-establish their sound. But back in '81 things were still whipping along just great, even with the band's penchant for novelty tunes:

This FM broadcast sounds crisp-as-hell and the performance is raging - it's the best of the 999 bootlegs I've heard.

Friday, June 29, 2012

Another one from The Biggest Prize in Sports which every reader comment thus far has identified as the best 999 (more HERE) album of all. What do the rest of you, thus far silent readers, think is the best 999 album?

This is a rougher sounding boot then out last BPiS-era recording and as a result it really shows the band's grit!

So now we get to the 999 's (more HERE) The Biggest Prize in Sports era. TBPiS didn't represent a drastic change from the first two albums but it definitely moved the band into more new-wave, radio-friendly territory. And that was a good thing, it played to the band's roots in pub rock and there love of a good song

As we mentioned earlier (see HERE) seventies UK punk band 999 were big on touring North America. This FM broadcast from the High Energy Plan tour, shows 'em spreading the word of punk to the tanned masses of California.

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Like lot of punk-era British bands that got slagged off at home, 999 toured Canada, inducing my hometown of Winnipeg. Hence why the band was comparatively well-known known among my peers in the early 80's and helps to explain how I found not one but THREE 999 LP's - High Energy Plan, The Biggest Prize in Sports and Concrete - in a friend's basement. I loved all three album but, predictably High Energy Plan,which cherry picks the band's first two albums, was the one that made me a fan for life.

This rough '77 bootlegcaptures the crackling energy of the band's initial outburst. Like many of their pub rock peers (Nick Cash had been in Kilburn and the Highroads with Ian Dury, Pablo LaBritain was an old friend of Joe Strummer who played, briefly, with The Clash early on) waffled between rock classicism and punk modernity (which the years have gone onto prove weren't as far apart as all they were made to seem at the time). As someone who felt that same division, I was sucked into the band's high-energy mix of pop, punk, glam, reggae and whatnot.

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Back in the nineties, I remember seeing this comic on the Dead Kennedys from the "Hard Rock" series put out by a company called Revolutionary Comics and being kinda disdainful. Not only did the series have a real Classic Rock bias (Kiss, Metallica, Van Halen) but the artwork smacked of melodrama and the dialog of massive info dumps.

Looking at it now, it seems like a crude-but-charming rock n' roll version of those For Beginners series, complete with the little narrator on the panel edges. The men (writer Deena Dasein and artist Joe Paradise) did their research pretty well and certainly informed me of a few things I didn't know.

Revolutionary Comics has done high-quality scans of some of their best work and you can find out about it HERE!

Whaddya think of this comic book history of the DK's? Let us know in the COMMENTS section.

Sunday, June 24, 2012

So on Volume One of the Summer Punk series (see HERE), we argued that the pop-punk underground better exemplifies the sounds of summer than any auto-tuned-dance-drek. As usual, I've tilted my section towards bands who admire the Ramones but I've tried to keep it mixed up a bit. Now let us continue to celebrate the forthcoming season with simple-n-loud guitars, sing-along hooks and cleverly-dumb lyrics!

(Band link = homepage, song link = YouTube)

1. D.I. - Surfin' Anarchy
This re-write of Chuck Berry's original, released as a single in 1989, is one of the highlights of these Fullerton punks' storied career.

5. Sloppy Seconds - I Can't Slow Down
Some diss the second Sloppy Seconds album, Knock Yer Block Off, for it's more rock sound but song-wise and lyric-wise I say it's this Indianapolis junk-rock band's best.

6. Lemonaids - Summer Crush On You
A
new and very fun Ramones-core band from Glasgow, Scotland who not only
got a track on this volume but got a bit of their cover art pinched for it as
well.

7. Superchunk - Cruel Summer
Chapel
Hill's Superchunk have re-emerged as the ripping band we remember and
not as the intriguing, if meandering ensemble they became over the last decade. For proof, check this brand-new cover of this Bananarma song, which is the B-side of their new single, This Summer.

8. The Breakup Society - The Summer of Jocelyn May
Phoenix power-poppers with a great track from their highly unappreciated album, James at 35.

10. Even in Blackouts - Summer Comes
Chicagoan (and ex-Screeching Weasel memeber) Jughead spent the auights playing with this acoutstic pop-punk band who I fancy sound like a cross between Tilt and Blood on the Saddle.

11. New Bomb Turks - Summer Romance
Sure NBT leader Eric Davidson now calls their sound 'gunk-punk' but back in the early nineties these four guys from Columbus, Ohio had the punk underground by the throat.

12. Radio Birdman - Aloha Steve and Danno
Finally some Australian representation! Here, we've grabbed one of the poppier songs from the usually pummeling repertoire of this ultra-influential group.

13. White Wires - Summer Girl
According to Ottawa power-pop-punks, White Wires, summer girls are 'young and free' and don't listen to their parents or think about when they're gonna die.

15. Ramones - California Sun (live, 1978)
Since I've tagged NYC's the Ramones as the progenitors of this so-called summer-punk thing, they needed a track like "Summer Sun" on here.

16. Helen Love - Long Hot Summer
The UK's Helen Love, who's dedicated her career to a twee obsession with the Ramones, ought to be a a mere curiosity but her song-writing chops belie her fan-girl-ness

17. The Last - Every Summer Day
Great late seventies LA surf-punk from a band who should've toured with the Barracudas.

Whew that take a lot of time indoors, while I should have been outside!I hope you have a thought on the selection - (favourites, surprises, new-to-you things etc.) to put in the COMMENTS section!!After all, I now have enough material for four more volumes - so if you want MORE let us know!!!

Saturday, June 23, 2012

The Haddonfields are a new St., Louis Ramones-core band. While on The Skin is the Best Part, they pay respect to the Queers, The Lillingtons and Screeching Weasel there's enough self-loathing wit and high-tempo hooks to overcome the fear of familiarity (and the concern that the cover art is bound for Really Bad Punk Art.)

Do yourself a favour and check out the hardcore-speed, "When She Left", which shows the band at its fastest and hookiest.

&lt;p&gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://thehaddonfields1.bandcamp.com/track/when-she-left"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;When she left by The Haddonfields&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&lt;/p&gt;

Friday, June 22, 2012

Hey, if you're interested in MRML re-upping some of the lost treasures from our archives, go HERE to make your requests!

To celebrate the end of their slow-motion break-up, the Ramones (more HERE) released a lavishly packaged recording of their final show in 1997. This now out-f-print set features guest appearances by Dee Dee, Lemmy from Motorhead, Lars and Tim from Rancid, Chris Cornell and Ben Shepherd of Soundgarden and, for better or worse, Eddie Vedder of Pear Jam fame.

Thursday, June 21, 2012

Requests keep coming in for re-ups but, as I have said, I have no intention of restoring everything Mediafire deleted. Of course, I do intend to re-up some of what was lost in the (Media)Fire.

What I'd like from you, regular readers, is your suggestions. What do you want to see returned to Music Ruined My Life's pages? Peruse the archives and let me know what you'd like to see returned this summer.

Needless to say, regular commenters will get priority but sheer numbers should suffice to get me into action.

Sure you knew the Ramones (more HERE) licensed "Blitzkrieg Bop" to Budweiser but did you know they wrote and recorded a trio of tracks for the Steel Reserves Brewing Company back in 1994? Well, the weird thing is not only did they do that but that the songs are gallons of fun, much more so then a lot of the CJ era. Since I've never even heard of Steel Reserves beer, I'm able to enjoy these without bitter sell-out after-taste

While I have no song-writing credits on these songs, "Gimme My Steel Reserve" bears more than a passing resemblance to Dee Dee's "All is Quiet on the Eastern Front" from 1981's Pleasant Dreams.

Ramones-maniacs:

Whaddya make of the Ramones flogging beer?Let us know in the COMMENTS section

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

So, yeah, I ordered the Ramones (more HERE) album, Mondo Bizarro the other day from one of my local record stores. I'm ready. I was deeply disappointed back in '92 but over the years I've come to see the albums strengths outweighing its weakness. Other than the fact that it is obviously from 1992, I don't know the exact source of these live tracks, all from Mondo Bizarro, otherthan that they were recorded for radio broadcast along with an interview with Joey. The fact that they aren't playing at Loco speed, makes me suspect that this may have been recorded from a music industry gig of some sort. Enjoy!

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

I bought some kid's cassette copy of the Ramones (more HERE) Too Tough To Die for $2.00 back in 1984. He was just waving it around in the hallway looking for offers. At the time I only owned LP's of End of the Century and Road to Ruin and wasn't yet a fanatic.

Too Tough To Die was one the albums that really kicked off my never-ending Ramones bender (the other being It's Alive). While I know it is not their absolute prime, I still love the Richie era, especially TTTD and Animal Boy. This BBC concert comes from the tour for Halfway To Sanity (my least favourite of the Richie era) and finds the band racing through hits old and new in controlled fashion.

Monday, June 18, 2012

If you like your Ramones (more HERE) primitive (and who doesn't, really?) then this piece of history is for you. The sound is dirty as hell but it's still amazing that this not only exists but how how clearly it demonstrates the band's focus well before the recording of the first album.

The fact that this was filmed says that a lot of people, artistic director Arturo Vega not least among them, knew that something earth-shaking was afoot in NYC.

Sunday, June 17, 2012

Here's a somewhat famous bootleg of a Ramones (more HERE) FM broadcast that was recorded live at My Father's Place in July, 1982. At this point the band is still touring the under-rated-if-over-produced album, Pleasant Dreams, still have Marky on the kit and have not yet hit their top speed. Not only is it good to hear the songs from the Spector-Gouldman era in raw form but you also get to hear the band tear through the Jan & Dean (and Brian Wilson) song, "Surf City", which they wouldn't record for another decade.

Saturday, June 16, 2012

"Bullshit politicians. bloated pin-dick motherfuckers. bullshit politicians bow and curtsey to the seats of power. we'll never learn and nothing will ever change if we stay this course of followers and slaves. i can't believe we're still content reshuffling the same old decks of kings and queens and faux democracies. i say we hand it back to these bullshit politicians. Free John Hinckley."

Propagandhi: Free John Hinckley

<a href="http://propagandhi.bandcamp.com/track/free-john-hinckley">Free John Hinckley by Propagandhi</a>

NYC's Houseboat have gone and put out a concept 10"! Despite echoing Green Day in title and concept (and Robert Crumb in the artwork) this 9:58 epic reminds me of the promise of the Grath Madden's early work in The Steinways and Short Attention. Love Houseboat (who also feature Zack, Ace, Mike!) as I do, the band's move towards slightly more conventional song-writing has given short-shrift to Grath's brilliant use of the sub-thirty second song. Well that skill is in full-effect here on this 'piece', which veers from pretty to harsh but remains consistently catchy, witty and self-loathing ("You may think I'm an asshole but that's only some of the time").

&lt;p&gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://houseboat.bandcamp.com/album/21st-century-breakroom"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;21st Century Breakroom by House Boat&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&lt;/p&gt;

There's somewhat amusing Tumblr called Really Bad Punk Art (which often resembles Ramone to the Bone without the downloads). All the badness does get me to thinking about some of my less-than-brilliant cut n' paste cover art that MRML has featured over the years:

Here I lifted a teenage pencil crayon work from Deviant Art.

Bless you, Discogs (and Paint)

Yes, as the texture suggests, that's just a cropped T-shirt.

Cropped gig-poster...

A verging-on-clever idea that I couldn't pull off, despite a serious effort.

The point?
I'll continue to muddle away making cover art, choosing to believe that I'm getting better at it, regardless of any evidence to the contrary.
HOWEVER, if there are any people out there who are talented in lay-out and design interested in creating cover (and maybe back cover) art for some of our upcoming projects you are invited to contact me at:musicruinedmylife (at) gmail (dot) com

UPDATE: Received two generous offers of help already. I'll keep you posted on further developments.

Friday, June 15, 2012

Tell me from the time you saw the title, you didn't KNOW Keith Morris
wold be interviewed for this. It looks like the other Punk Doc regular,
Henry Rollins may not have have been interviewed for Filmage.
Maybe some bad blood remains between the former Flag-wavers Mr.
Stevenson and Mr. Rollins. That aside, this is going to kick ass - and
I'm not even the most hardcore devotee of the Descendents/All. (via)

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